Vera

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Vera twirled spaghetti around her fork with her head leaned in her hand, a single tear streaming down her cheek while she thought about her boyfriend, and the look on his face as his captors drove him away. She would never forget it.

Almost twenty four hours have passed since he was stolen from her, and her mind was plagued with the worst case scenarios of what happened to him.

What if he was being held captive somewhere?

What if they beat him up and left him for dead?

What if he was already dead?

The thought brought more tears down her cheeks.

"Try eating some dinner, honey."  Candace said, staring at her from across the table with concern in her eyes.  "The police will find him."

Her father nodded in agreement.  "That's right.  I spoke to the captain personally and told him to put every spare officer he could find on the case.  They will leave no stone unturned.  I promise."

Vera smiled weakly. She knew her family was trying to help ease her fears, but there was something deep inside of her that told her she would never see her boyfriend again.  "Oh, God..." She wailed, leaning into her hands.  "I should have fought them!"

"Don't think like that, Vera."  Luke said.

"Why not?  You're always teaching me self defense moves! I could have-"

"They had a gun.  There was nothing you could do."

"It would have been better to die protecting him, instead of acting like a coward."

"Vera-"

"Please, don't waste your breath trying to make me feel better.  I deserve my sorrow."

Gregory bit back the sigh that threatened to escape his lips.  He wished there was more he could do to help his daughter.  She was so unhappy before she began dating Peyton, and with him being taken from her, the unrelenting sadness had returned.

"I'll call Officer Graves again to see if there is an update in the case," He said, picking up the telephone that hung on their dining room wall.

Luke folded his arms. "Can't you call someone else?"

Vera tensed in her seat.

"I suppose I could," Gregory replied, "But he's the officer in charge of the case."

"Yeah, but there's something about him I don't trust."

"Don't be ridiculous. He's a decorated officer."

"So?"

"So, I'm going to call someone who can help."

He punched in the number and waited for an answer before his stepson could protest further.  The phone rang a few times, then his answering machine picked up the call.  "Hmm, he must not be at his desk."

"You could call Officer Nichols."  Vera said.

"Oh, alright." 

Gregory would never admit it aloud, but he was not a fan of female police officers.  He didn't believe they had the strength or the intellect to protect and serve like a man could.  Nevertheless, he picked up the phone to punch in her number. 

Just as he began dialing, Wolfgang ran to the front door and began growling, every hair on his body standing as he bared his teeth.

"Now what on earth has gotten into him?"  Luke asked, standing from the table. He stroked his back and tried to calm him down, but his growls soon turned into loud, ferocious barks.